Trimtab Vol. 18 No. 1

BFI Updates

BFI has announced the Call for Proposals to the 2017 Fuller Challenge, inviting innovators who are addressing the many crises facing humanity and the fundamental systems that support life on Earth to enter to win the 2017 Fuller Challenge Prize. For the past decade, The Buckminster Fuller Challenge has been widely regarded as socially-responsible design’s highest award, advancing whole-systems approaches to solving humanity’s most pressing problems. Enter for a chance to win the $100,000 grand prize, or recommend a project.

When you become a member of BFI at the Dymaxion level or above, you receive a necklace modeled on the buckminsterfullerene, the elegant molecule that affirmed Buckminster Fuller’s life’s work exploring the geometry of nature. Did you catch our story of the buckminsterfullerene a couple weeks ago? Read more here.

Trends + Perspectives

For those Synergetics fans in the audience, Andy Thomson writes a piece on “The fact that we have inherited so many unquestioned fundamentals, such as the base ten number system, the x,y,z cubic Cartesian spatial grid, 360 degrees in a circle, etc. was not lost on Fuller. There are many more ways to count and divide space than that, and in fact, there is a much more elegant and rational way to do so…”

Buckminster Fuller’s work influenced many modern tent designs. His exploration in building structures inspired by the properties of the geodesic, the line connecting two points on a sphere, led to more lightweight spacious strong and aerodynamic tents. Doing more with less! Read more here.

Several Native American designers spoke at the the AIGA Design Conference recently about the need for a comprehensive approach to design education. They called for an increase in diversity of perspectives and recognition of the US’s rich indigenous design history. “While diversity and inclusion might be ubiquitous terms in the mission statement of any progressive university, these words alone do little to address the lack of diversity within the curriculum itself. So what’s really causing this disconnect?”

Resources

GoodCompany Ventures has just launched the Climate Ventures 2.0 accelerator! Developed as part of the White House Climate Data Initiative with funding from the William Penn Foundation, CV2 is seeking entrepreneurial innovations in agriculture and water system resilience efforts. Read more here.

Carlos Carcas made this 20-minute documentary on Fuller featuring interviews with Buckminster Fuller’s daughter, Allegra Fuller Snyder, Norman Foster, an architect who worked with Fuller, and vintage footage of Fuller himself.

This phone application will take you on a 4.6km narrated walk through 4.6 billion years of the earth’s history, with each meter representing one million years. Learn how our planet evolved over this vast stretch of time, including the accretion of the Earth from a disc of rocky debris, the formation of the oceans and atmosphere, the appearance of bacteria, including the first life, then the first nucleated cells, and, eventually, multicellular organisms. Read more here.

Upcoming Events

BFI will offer an informational webinar about the Fuller Challenge on Wednesday, February 8th at 2pm ET. BFI staff will provide a conceptual and technical introduction to entering the 2017 Fuller Challenge. Join for the chance to ask your questions live. The webinar is free and open to the public. Click for details and to register.

Living Future is the forum for leading minds in the green building movement seeking solutions to the most daunting global issues of our time. This year’s three-day conference, which takes place May 17-19, 2017, will focus on the diverse layers of Genius and Courage, and features keynotes from Van Jones, Kirsti Luke, and Naomi Klein.

From The Idea Index

A place-based strategy for conservation, education, and sustainable livelihoods, KTK-BELT studio was a Fuller Challenge Semifinalist in 2016. Check out an overview of this comprehensive model in Nepal here.

From the Store

A Limited Edition print portfolio of new works was created to celebrate the 120th anniversary of the birth of Buckminster Fuller. Published by The Buckminster Fuller Institute in 2015, the portfolio includes ten giclee color prints made by ten contemporary artists. The portfolio can now be purchased on BFI's online store for a discounted price.

About Trimtab

Trimtab is BFI's monthly email newsletter service, bringing you BFI programming updates and news from around the world related to "humanity's option for success" and comprehensive design solutions.